New LD2000 beam show "Rising" uploaded to PL FTP server

[flecom]

When it's time to get started, I load up a *bunch* of random beam frames first, before I do anything else. That way I have a huge selection of frames to choose from when I'm building the show. If I get to a part in the song where I know I want a sweeping fan of color, I can easily pick one from the 30 or more that I have in the frame file. That saves time vs me having to go look for those frames on the hard drive when I actually need them. Of course, sometimes the exact frame I want isn't available, so I have to either edit an existing frame or draw a new one from scratch, but that doesn't happen too often (at least for beam shows). When everything is all done, I just delete all the unused frames in the frame file.

I do the exact same thing, I have a beam show frame file with a crap ton of beam frames, lines, shapes, color gradients patterns etc, then just delete the unused frames...

but now in Beyond/QS2 its just a workspace, a lot easier

[masterpj]

so about this collection of random beam show frames.
did you make the collection of beam frames once?
i mean like combine them from other shows/ frame files?

[flecom]

yes I made it a couple years ago, from um... "borrowed" frames from a lot of good beam shows I liked plus some I made myself

[masterpj]

ah i see, maybe i should set something up like that too.
though mostly i will be going for completely custom made shows like i always do.
takes long and stuff but no show will ever have a part that can be the same as an other show
not that something is wrong with that though

[flecom]

well most of them (I'd say 99%) are static frames, lines, circles, groups of lines etc... the actual animation is just motion effects/zooms etc

beam shows are all about how you an use simple lines/circles/squares etc

[masterpj]

I agree over 9000%

[hobbybob]

Wow, this is exactly what i was looking for. I was drawing all kinds of stuff over and over again.
Is there an easy way of loading up a cool looking show you like and copy the frames and then open up another show and do it again, so you end up with a "workspace" of cool looking beam effects one then can use to create new shows ?
I have a lot of cool ideas to make shows, have some excellent music in mind to give back to the community but once i start i always think my show looks crap and then stop it ;-(
When i open up shows from others there lots of cool tricks which i do not completely understand (but want to!). Mine look very simple and those already took me ages to build.
So would be cool to do my first QM show and share, but then creating some sort of collection file which i can use over and again sounds cool.

Hope someone can explain how to go from here ?

[buffo]

Is there an easy way of loading up a cool looking show you like and copy the frames and then open up another show and do it again, so you end up with a "workspace" of cool looking beam effects one then can use to create new shows ?

Yes. Open a beam show that you like in Showtime. You'll notice that all the frames have loaded into the frame window. Now load up Lasershow Designer and select the "Delete empty frames" option. (I'm currently traveling and don't have my Pangolin gear with me, so I'm operating from memory here.) This will pack all the frames tightly together. Now scroll to the end of the frame file. Then load the frame file for another beam show that you like (still using LaserShow Designer now). Make sure you select "start loading frames at frame number X", where X is the number of the first blank frame in the list. That will load all the frames from the new show in a line right behind all the ones you just loaded.

You can use the "delete empty frames" option to pack them close together again, and then keep loading more frames. When you have a good 6000 frames or so, you've probably got enough!

My suggestion: Load the frame files from the following shows: "Liveshow", "Again", "Standing in Motion", and "Gradient Moby". That should be more than enough to get you started.

I have a lot of cool ideas to make shows, have some excellent music in mind to give back to the community but once i start i always think my show looks crap and then stop it

Just finish the show and save it. Then move on to the next song. Later, if you really think the show looks like crap, you can always go back and change things. But the key is to just start making shows. After you've done a few, you start to get a feel for what works and what doesn't. But you'll never learn if you don't make some shows first! Don't worry about how you think they look. Just make them. In time, you'll see that they really look a lot better than you first thought.

When i open up shows from others there lots of cool tricks which i do not completely understand (but want to!). Mine look very simple and those already took me ages to build.

Here's a tip: Once you make a custom effect, you can re-use it.

Try this - Load up a beam show that you like. Then go to the effects editor and click on 'load effects file'. Now click on another SHOW FILE that you like, and you'll see that the effects for that show will be added to your effects list. Keep doing this, and you'll have a huge list of effects that you can use when you're making your new show. (Be sure to delete all the duplicates so the list is manageable.)

With a combination of a huge list of frames and a huge list of effects to choose from, making the show should be a lot simpler!

Note: There seems to be a bug in how Showtime saves effects. I have tried to save a 'master list' of effects as an effects file, but it never works right. So instead, I just save the entire show (even if it's blank), which also saves the effects list as part of the show file.

It turns out that you can load just the effects from the show file. The file requestor for the effects window doesn't care if you tell it to load an effects file or a show file. It will still grab just the effects. But it seems to have problems saving just effects to an effects file. (Though it works perfectly when you save the whole show.) So keep that in mind...

Adam

EDIT: for more info on this show, see this thread.

[gabrielefx]

that loading of a bunch of random beam frame sounds like a great idea!
Actually i never used a frame before, i always custom draw anything.. even for beamshows.
it's a pain in the ass and slow lol..
i should try it an other way.
Except for when selling a show that is

+1

too much random colors
too much random drawings
btw...good sync

[Pangolin]

Hi Adam,

I just ran across this (I don't get to PL too much these days).

I have only two words for you. KICK ASS!!

Bill